I Wish For Friends
by FlikFreak
Summary: Oneshot, slightly AU, sort of Season Zero-ish. The spirit of the Millennium Puzzle doubted for a long time that anyone would be worthy of solving it, but in a time of crisis, a boy named Yuugi Mutou changes its mind...


I tend to tell mini-stories to friends via instant messenger and this popped up. Maybe I could adapt some of it to my Season Zero novelization that I need to finish editing so it won't suck. Anywho. This is something I kinda pulled out my left ear or something; I wrote it within the course of a single day. I'm not even sure if I have the genre right on this. I hope it's worth it.

**I Wish For Friends**

**A Yu-Gi-Oh! Fanfiction by FlikFreak**

* * *

_A mystery surrounds the Millennium Puzzle. If anyone was to solve it, they would be granted a single wish. With that wish they could receive anything, but there was no guarantee that it could be taken away from them. To add to this, their wish came with a price, for if whatever it was they desired was being threatened, a dark and sinister spirit would possess them. This spirit was not evil, however – only as evil as its host._

_If one wished for money and one was to rob him, a deadly game would ensue to punish the robber._

_If one wished for fame, anyone threatening to let out horrible truths about the wish-maker would be punished in a similar way._

_The spirit was not evil; only as evil as its host. What it was, however, was ruthless. It took many methods to punishing wrongdoers, but each of them began with a game. Anyone whom cheated at these games would be severely punished by horrific illusions among other things._

_Knowing this, the spirit had scowled upon its fate. It made an oath to itself: with its power, only the worthy could solve the puzzle. Only those that the spirit personally chose could possibly find out the meaning of the riddle…_

"_It is something you have seen, but it cannot be seen."_

* * *

A strange darkness hovered in the corner of a small bedroom, watching as a boy near the window fumbled with fragments of gold in his hands. Normally the shadow enjoyed watching people work in vain to solve the mysterious puzzle he had resided in for millennia, and this boy was no exception. Tonight, however, things were different.

Most every day for eight years, Yuugi had come home cheerfully, and would concentrate his entire mind on the puzzle. Even if he was an admirably persevere boy, the darkness enjoyed keeping the solution from him and watching him struggle to find it. It was, after all, the only entertainment it had. Today, Yuugi had come home with a somber and hopeless expression filling his heart, but his habit of trying to solve the puzzle was so strong that he had gone straight to his desk and began working on it, even as the problem on his mind plagued him.

What was wrong with him? Normally he was so cheerful…

_What am I going to do?_ Yuugi thought sadly, his hopeless musings reaching the shadow's ears. _I don't have enough allowance for twenty thousand yen…_

Twenty thousand yen…what would he need that for? The shadow crept slowly closer, careful that the boy would not notice him.

_I don't want to worry grandpa about this,_ Yuugi continued, sulking inwardly, _But if I don't get the money for Ushio, he'll hurt Jounouchi and Honda…_

How strange…after all the rotten people that the spirit had met, he never expected this. For the first time he began to wonder why this boy wanted to solve the puzzle…just what was his wish?

Making a swift decision, the darkness peered into the boy's heart to sense what kind of person this was. This, of course, caused a slight discomfort to Yuugi (whom only paused for a moment, but otherwise continued his musings), but the shadow had long lost its empathy for mortals and it would be hard to get it back.

The boy was admirable; there was no doubt about it. Yuugi's heart was pure in a strange way; he was very naïve for his age and held no real understanding of emotions such as anger, hatred or vengeance. The shock of the light within the boy's heart caused the shadow to hesitate momentarily. Perhaps this boy was not what he thought at first…

A single nod from the shadow allowed the boy to unconsciously see the solution. As the boy kept pondering what to do to help his friend, he hardly noticed that his fingers seemed to be moving on their own accord, fitting the pieces of the puzzle together in the right order. It didn't take long for the boy to notice that he was doing better than usual, but the first thought that had come to his mind rather amused the shadow nearby.

_Wait…what am I doing putting a puzzle together at a time like this?_

After a moment of confusion, Yuugi shrugged and continued. The dark spirit hovered closely over his shoulder, careful to avoid alerting the mortal to his presence. _It's strange,_ Yuugi thought, staring at the golden fragments in a mixture of thoughtfulness and amazement. _I feel awful, but for some reason I'm doing better solving the puzzle._

Moments passed, and it seemed as though another century had gone by for the shadow, but it was patient as the boy slipped the pieces together one by one. Its anticipation reached record high as Yuugi held the puzzle triumphantly in front of him, with only one piece remaining. Smiling, he reached into the box next to him for the final piece…

…but it wasn't there.

The shadow knew that Yuugi was shocked. The final piece had been stolen from someone whom he insisted was his friend. The darkness must have leaked its thoughts to Yuugi, because he instantly packed his bag with the puzzle in hand and raced back to school.

* * *

It wasn't long before Yuugi had made it back to school, but he met with Ushio again…a big mistake. In his haste to complete his beloved puzzle, the foolish mortal had forgotten about the bully. Now he had been beaten himself, and though Yuugi had a strong spirit, the shadow could easily see that he had no power to defend himself from anything physically brutal.

Just as Ushio was walking off, however, the darkness spun around, sensing two other mortals approaching. It was the other young man from the other day, and a friend of his. The blonde one ran over to Yuugi, and the darkness sped out of the way as he knelt down. He urged the boy to awaken from his unconscious state, but the smaller of the two was barely clinging. In his stupor, he uttered a phrase so quiet it would be inaudible in most situations.

"I wished…for friends…"

At that comment, the shadow fell into deep shock. Only a boy this naïve and pure would wish for something so small, yet so important. He could make friends on his own, and truth be told he already had. This boy…could he possibly be…?

The blonde next to Yuugi glanced at the golden puzzle, noting the missing piece. With a small prayer, he gave the piece back to Yuugi, putting it in his hand and clasping his fingers around it. The shadow watched carefully; this boy made a wish that the spirit was supposed to grant…but it had already come true for him without the help of the puzzle. Even so, perhaps there was something the shadow could do to help.

The darkness pulled at Yuugi's consciousness, causing him to awaken. As the boy looked up, Ushio was walking away, and both Jounouchi and Honda were on the ground, out cold. Yuugi himself, however, was clearly terrified. This had been entirely his fault. Before he could fall into grief, however, something in his hand caught his attention.

The final piece.

The shadow, for the first time, felt sympathy for someone…was it sympathy? Perhaps it was something else. Yuugi glanced upward at his beloved treasure, and slowly reached forward to slip in the final piece. A small fear arose in the boy's mind, almost pushing the shadow away as well. What if this was a false hope? What if his wish didn't come true? What if… What if…

With a soft click, the piece slipped into place. With a delighted grin, the spirit slipped into the completed puzzle as it began to pulse brightly. Yuugi's eyes widened as his mind tumbled into a dark abyss and his consciousness receded. His shadow crept up the wall, an ominous aura filling the air…

_It's time for a game, Ushio, and this is one you won't be winning._

--END--


End file.
